How To Be YouTube

Hello, it's Dan Bull, and one of the common things
I get sent most from the folks that are commenting
Is how did I turn my passion and obsession
For music, games and videos into a profession?
So I reckoned that I'd give a little lesson
So you get an impression of my method for success in this
My little niche, my particular field
And how I found people to whom it'd appeal

So let's rewind the clocks
Right back to when I was a skinny guy with spots
Didn't like school much, used to find it tough
So I'd sit at home alone and write a lot
Animating videos, making silly tracks
About ridiculous things I didn't really grasp
But it was all practice, it was all training
For the day that I prayed that I'd make it

Made a band with my mates called Matronsapron
Trained my brain to say I was fated for fame
In the holidays I got a taste of what I chased
So when I got to college age, I selected every topic based
On levelling up the skills that I needed
And I wouldn't give up until I'd succeeded
But unfortunately for me
I didn't see the futility of a media degree

In this game, qualifications are null and void
I rage quit, dropped out, became unemployed
But I learnt more surfing on the internet
Than I ever did at Leeds Met, no disrespect
Shared tunes on UKHHF
The feedback was brutal, I trained, got better
Didn't waste days trying to pray for forgiveness
I stayed up late 'til I made better mixes

'Til I had enough tracks for an album
The last of my cash, manufacture, then sell them
I sent demos to labels and DJs
Amazed that my MySpace attained maybe three plays
Came across a new site that did video
Didn't realise just how big it'd be though
Stuck a couple of tracks on just to see what happened
The next viral sensation? Me rapping!

Little me just sat in my bedroom
It gave me such an ego boost, I ran out of head room
I finally saw it could be more than just a dream
I felt a little more like Master P than Mister Bean
I tackled the task, making track after track
And uploading them to YouTube, back to back
Promoting them to you through tactics that
I'd planned out like a commander with tacks and a map

I made a log and made a lot of contacts
Journalists, bloggers, some of them even got back
We'll never catch prey if we wait for them to chase us
I got on television, radio and papers
And even though I didn't need TV
I bagged myself a meeting at the BBC
Now I was getting paid just to do my hobby
Plus Claudia Winkleman held the door and let me through the lobby

Rock and Roll, I finally got off the dole
No longer got the cold feeling that I'd lost control
'Cause I was finally driving at my own pace
Moved out the family home and got my own place
Like I could roam waves upon a chartered ship
Then I applied to YouTube for a partnership
Turns out that was brilliant timing
I made a little ditty for an Indie called Skyrim

All of a sudden like a million minds, listening
Hearing my rhymes, this was really unlike anything
I'd ever seen, ever heard, even ever knew
All of a sudden I could accrue revenue
Then it grew, head sweating, I was mopping off the residue
Doing better than my music teacher thought I'd ever do
Because now I was in the game rap rap game
Never predicted just exactly how big that became

Though I have to say, it wasn't major label rapper fame
But I was sweet enough I didn't need the Aspartame
I made new friends, made new fans
Linked the videos I made to some gaming brands
Then the next thing I knew, my plane had landed
In LA and we were making some major plans
I got to go to E3 and be in ERB
See the sea from the ceiling of my B&B

I couldn't even believe how far I'd come from home
Five thousand miles out my comfort zone
And I'd done it alone, myself, training talent
Through my many days basement dwelling
The only real trick is maintaining the balance
Grabbing the stick instead of chasing the carrots
It takes dedication reshaping your habits
And never being afraid to be failed and embarrassed

I've made some mistakes that have damaged
My reputation, but I faced them and managed
The wild web as a place can be savage
So try and stay safe and just play the advantage
Stay on track of the skills in which you need to be proficient
Just doing what you've always done before is insufficient
The speed of the world keeps being increasingly efficient
So you need to keep your skill tree in peak condition

Now when I started out there wasn't so much competition
But neither did I have the tools to help me on my mission
Nowadays there's a thousand ways to do it our way
Way more avenues than hours in a day
So it's down to you how you're gonna train
Tune up in the garage, get the power in your brain
Choose your character, professional or amateur
Selecting all the attributes and stretching your parameters

Forget the panic and concern, step into the Animus
And you will be flabbergasted at the things that can occur
Whether you're a janitor, manager or grandmother
You can be interplanetary, travelling from planet Earth
So let's rewind the clocks
Right back to the time you were a tiny dot
Full of potential to become an eventual adventurer
That'll maximize all the time you've got

Start now